Potpourri - 30 Gifts in 30 Days
A friend of mine had a beautiful wreath on her wall for years. It was covered in dried flowers, eucalyptus leaves, and tuffs of lavender colored feathers. It was gorgeous to see and gave off a nice scent as you walked by. I was thinking about that wreath today and thought with my idea yesterday to make a wreath to give why not suggest something that smells nice too. No, I’m not going to have you create a eucalyptus leaf wreath, but a nice basket of potpourri is a great gift to give as well!
The first thing you will need are the ingrediants. Herbs and flowers from your own garden are a grat place to begin. Some people have luck getting bags of discarded flowers from their local floral shops for cheap or even free. You want clean, disease free plants to make the best potpourri. If you are harveting your own the best time to do so is early in the morning just after the dew is gone. That is when you will gt the freshest scent.
You will need to dry your plants. Air drying is often recommended. Place the herb and flowers on a screen, like that from a window, and allow them to dry naturally. You want them to get good air circulation as they are drying out. Hanging is another easy method, simply hand them upside down and allow them to dry. You may want to place a pan or bag underneath any plants hanging up to catch anything that falls as they dry.
Once you have dried your plants you can begin putting them together. You will need a good fixative agent in your potpourri to help it last. Some suggestions are powdered orris root, oak moss, cellulose, or ground gum benzoin. Essential oils are also added to give a beautiful scent to the mixture. Once your potpourri is made you will need something to store it in. A small container with a lid that seals tight is best. You can often find small glass containers at thrift shops or in dollar stores that work perfectly. Be sure to keep the potpourri sealed when not in use to keep the fragrance lasting.
Here are some sites with recipes for making your own:
- Pioneer Thinking
- Atlantic Spice
- Make Stuff - Potpourri
- A World of Plenty
- Make Your Own Potpourri (this one is an ebook that you have to pay for, but has some great recipes to use)
potpourri, dried flowers, dried herbs, 30 gifts in 30 days
November 29th, 2007 at 1:59 pm
One thing to keep in mind is whether or not the person you are giving it to has allergies. I have lots of allergies, but never knew that I was allergic to eucalyptus until I walked by plants of it in IKEA. You don’t want your gift to be helping someone learn a new allergen! haha.